Washington DC -May 24- The Consumer Federation of America tonight praised the United States Senate for passing landmark legislation to strengthen and reform regulation of the nation’s financial system. Among its many important provisions, the bill would create a new federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and reduce the vulnerability of the financial system to failure, including by regulating the multi-trillion-dollar over-the-counter derivatives market and by making credit rating agencies more accountable for their actions.

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Washington DC -April 26- U.S. consumers are being inundated with prerecorded “robocalls” from companies claiming they can negotiate lower credit card interest rates – for a fee.

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Washington DC - April 15 - President Obama met with congressional leaders with hope that a bipartisan bill on financial regulatory reform is possible despite GOP claims it will encourage government bailouts of financial institutions.

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Washington DC - April 15 - Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner spoke of the meeting between President Obama and congressional leaders on the economic recovery and a need to move forward on a financial regulatory reform package.

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Washington DC - April 8 - Consumer loan delinquencies fell in eight of 11 loan categories in the fourth quarter of 2009, marking the second quarter in a row of broad-based improvement, according to the American Bankers Association’s Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin.

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Washington DC - March 30 - Building on the first Housing Finance Agency Innovation Fund for the Hardest Hit Housing Markets, the Administration announced an expansion of the initiative to target five additional states with high shares of their populations living in local areas of concentrated economic distress.

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Washington DC - March 30 - Proposals by federal banking regulators to tighten restrictions on commercial real estate (CRE) lending could further exacerbate a credit crisis that is choking new home building activity and threatening the fragile housing recovery now under way, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).

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Washington DC - March 25 - National Farmers Union (NFU) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on behalf of its dairy producer members pleading for an increase in the Dairy Product Price Support Program and help with credit issues the industry is facing.

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Washington DC - February 26 - The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that the average interest rate on conventional 30-year, fixed-rate, mortgage loans increased 5 basis points to 5.10 percent in January.  The average interest rate on 15- year, fixed-rate loans remained unchanged at 4.54 percent in January.

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Washington DC - February 22 - The Federal Reserve Board launched a new interactive website to help consumers better understand the new credit card protections that take effect on February 22, banning several harmful practices and requiring greater transparency in the disclosure of the terms and conditions of credit card accounts.

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Washington DC - February 17 - The Credit CARD Act of 2009, with major provisions taking effect this month, will save American cardholders billions of dollars by banning unfair or deceptive practices, according to research from the Pew Safe Credit Cards Project.

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Washington DC - February 11 - The U.S. Department of the Treasury released the following statement from Secretary Geithner marking one year of the Financial Stability Plan and its effect on the economy.

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Washington DC - February 10 - A recent survey commissioned by the Consumer Federation of America and Credit Union National Association revealed that, while most consumers (61%) are aware there are new credit card protections, most (65%) don’t know they take effect later this month and don’t understand the specific protections Congress approved last year.

To read the entire report, CLICK HERE

Washington DC - February 9 - Reiterating once again his commitment to small business as the engine of our economy, in his Weekly Address the President urges Congress to move forward immediately on steps to help them expand and create jobs.

To view President Obama’s Weekly Address, CLICK HERE

Washington DC - February 5 - The Federal Trade Commission moved to protect distressed homeowners from bogus foreclosure rescue and mortgage modification services by proposing a new rule that would forbid companies to charge up-front for these services.

To read the entire report, CLICK HERE